President Cyril Ramaphosa has concluded a Working Visit to the Kingdom of eSwatini where he held talks with His Majesty King Mswati III on a range of bilateral issues.

President Ramaphosa’s visit formed part of a series of courtesy calls on heads of state and government in the Southern African Development Community following his election as President in February 2018.

President Ramaphosa has paid similar visits to Angola, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia and Mozambique.

During his visit to the Hlane Royal Residence, President Ramaphosa and His Majesty King Mswati reviewed bilateral cooperation between the two countries in discussions that reflected the warmth of relations between the two leaders and the governments and people of the neighbouring states.

In this regard they noted with appreciation the ongoing cooperation in many sectors including trade and investment, security, health and education.

The two leaders directed the ministers of international relations and cooperation in the two countries to convene the Joint Bilateral Commission on Cooperation (JBCC) that oversees the implementation of signed agreements between South Africa and eSwatini.

They further directed that ministers should ensure that the issue of congestion at border posts and other outstanding issues are attended to.

President Ramaphosa and His Majesty King Mswati III also exchanged views on current developments in the SADC region. They also congratulated Nigeria and Senegal for conducting peaceful elections.

His Majesty King Mswati III wished the people of South Africa well for the success of the forthcoming provincial and national elections.

Following the deliberations of the two heads of state, King Mswati III invited President Ramaphosa to the conclusion of the annual Buganu Festival which celebrates the harvest of the first marula fruit of the season. This event was also attended by Her Majesty the Queen Mother.

Addressing regiments of Lutsango dancers from different parts of eSwatini at the close of the Buganu Festival, His Majesty warmly welcomed the visit by President Ramaphosa and expressed the wish that the two states would engage more frequently to “exchange ideas for the betterment of our peoples” and the “furtherance of relations as friendly neighbours”.

In his response President Ramaphosa expressed his appreciation for eSwatini’s hosting of the Working Visit and commended the Kingdom on its celebration of eSwatini culture.

President Ramaphosa also expressed appreciation for the solidarity shown by the people of eSwatini to South Africans during the struggle against apartheid.

The President said: “Now is the time for economic development. Our two countries are focusing on growing our economies and creating jobs for young people.”

President Ramaphosa said the talks had identified a broad range of opportunities for bilateral cooperation in sectors such as tourism, information and communications technology, the Fourth Industrial Revolution and agriculture.

The President expressed the wish that future cooperation be facilitated at the level of a binational commission.

President Ramaphosa was accompanied by Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Ms Lindiwe Sisulu and Minister of State Security Ms Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba.


Media enquiries: Khusela Diko, Spokesperson to the President on 072 854 5707

Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria

President Cyril Ramaphosa has this morning, 03 March 2019 arrived for a working visit in the Kingdom of Eswatini.

The President and His Majesty King Mswati III will today hold discussions on bilateral, regional and continental issues as well as international developments.

South Africa and Eswatini have cordial bilateral relations which are informed by cultural affinities, geographical proximity and historical ties dating back to the struggle against colonialism and apartheid in South Africa.

 The structured bilateral relations between the two countries are conducted through the Joint Bilateral Commission for Cooperation (JBCC) which was   established on 20 December 2004, and is convened at a Ministerial Level.

Furthermore, both countries have signed 21 bilateral agreements which serve as legal instruments for cooperation in areas such as cross-border movement of people and goods, trade and investment, health, defence and policing, among others.

South Africa is the largest trading partner of Eswatini. Total bilateral trade between the two countries amounted to R 33,4 billion in 2017, with exports from South Africa amounting to R 17,1 billion, whilst imports from the Kingdom reached a value of R16.2 billion.      

The President is accompanied by Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Ms Lindiwe Sisulu and Minister of State Security, Ms Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba. 


Media enquiries: Khusela Diko, Spokesperson to the President on 072 854 5707

Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria

President Cyril Ramaphosa will on Wednesday, 06 March 2019, address the 2019 Young Presidents Organisation (YPO) Global Leadership Conference Dinner at the Cape Town International Convention Centre in the Western Cape.

Founded in 1950, YPO is a global network of young chief executives of companies in diverse industries, with approximately 24 000 members from   more than 130 countries.

The organisation meets annually to foster its objective of creating better leadership through education, peer guidance and the sharing of ideas.

The President’s address to this global audience of business leaders will underline South Africa’s status as a partner and market that is open for business   and welcomes investment.

The Dinner will also be attended by the President of the Republic of Rwanda, H.E Paul Kagame.

The dinner will take place as follows:
Date: Wednesday, 06 March 2019
Time: 17:00 for 19:00
Venue: Cape Town International Convention Centre

Members of the media who would like to cover the Dinner should liaise with Tsakane Khambane on 082 084 5566 / Tsakane@presidency.gov.za by no later than 15:30 on Tuesday, 05 March 2019. 


Media enquiries: Khusela Diko, Spokesperson to the President on 072 854 5707

Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria

President Cyril Ramaphosa will, on Friday, 08 March 2019, officially launch the national Good Green Deeds programme in East London, Eastern Cape Province at the Sisa Dukashe stadium, Mdantsane at 8h00.
 
Whilst the President is leading the national launch in the Eastern Cape, other provinces are expected to simultaneously host similar Good Green Deeds   activities.
 
The Good Green Deeds programme is a ground-breaking environmental awareness programme that seeks to mobilise all sectors in South Africa to become more environmentally conscious. Littering, illegal dumping, pollution and other harmful activities have ill effects on the natural environment as   well as the quality of life and health of communities.
 
The focus of the programme will be on promoting sustainable waste management practices such as recycling. It also aims to galvanise the society at large to change their behaviour around the environment and learn to prevent, and reduce waste and pollution by cleaning South Africa. The call to action is born out of a realisation that the natural resources are experiencing pressure as a result of preventable pollution.
 
The programme will have an economic value to the country – by diverting waste away from landfills will provide considerable social, economic and environmental opportunities for the country, including job creation and enterprise development. It is estimated that South Africa’s waste economy contributes a minimum of R15 billion to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
 
Furthermore, the Good Green Deeds programme also encourages other responsible environmental practices including the use of clean technology in all sectors of the economy, particularly in transport, agriculture, mining, manufacturing and construction industries. It also promotes better planning and involvement of all role players in building green spaces, community parks, land use, and sustainable human settlements.
 
All these efforts are geared towards the attainment of the Constitutional right to an environment that is not harmful to the health and well-being of South Africans.
 
Accredited media will be expected to present their valid press cards at the launch event.
 

Media enquiries: Khusela Diko, Spokesperson to the President on 072 854 5707 or Albi Modise, Environmental Affairs Spokesperson on 083 490 2871

Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria

President Cyril Ramaphosa will on Saturday, 09 February 2019, officiate a land restitution ceremony that will mark successful claims by 10 Gauteng communities who will be presented with title deeds and financial compensation.

Hosted by Minister of Rural Development and Land Reform Ms Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, the ceremony will be held at the Moretele Recreation Park in Mamelodi, Tshwane, at 10h00 under the theme “Land Restitution at Work – Reversing the Legacy of the 1913 Native Land Act”.

The land claims totalling R203 million were facilitated by the Commmission on the Restitution of Land Rights to the benefit of communities in the cities of Tshwane, Johannesburg, and Ekurhuleni.

 Title deeds will be handed over to the Mahlangu and Malobola families while financial compensation will be presented in respect of nine claims which include:
• the Dukathole community;
• Ebenezer Churches;
• Motshile Jacob Mathabe;
• Franspoort 332 JR Claim;
• Hondsrivier 508 JR – Msiza family claim;
• Kafferskraal Land Claim;
• Tweefontein 491 JR – Mahlangu Family;
• Tweefontein 491 JR – Ntuli Family, 
• and Vygeboschlaagte 236 JQ – Rodman community claim.

These groups lost their land when they were abruptly removed from their properties by pre-democratic administrations who acted in terms of the widely resisted 1913 Natives Land Act.

The handover ceremony will include the presentation of title deeds to the Nanduna Community Property Association in the City of Tshwane to whom 142 hectares of land will be restored.

To date the Gauteng Provincial Land Claims Commission has settled 11 012 claims out of a total of 11 437 lodged in 1998.

President Ramaphosa has consistently outlined that land redistribution, restitution and reform will be remedied through due process that will enable South Africa to develop and maintain food security, and to grow the agricultural sector.

Details of the Land Restitution ceremony are as follows:
Date: 09 March 2019
Time: 10:00
Venue: Moretele Recreation Park, Mamelodi, City of Tshwane 

Media are advised to RSVP on 06 March 2019 by 16h00 to Mr Tshepo Diale on 071 850 1751 / tshepo.diale@drdlr.gov.za and Mr Sibusiso Lubisi on 076 793 1658 / sibusiso.lubisi@drdlr.gov.za. 


Media enquiries: Khusela Diko, Spokesperson to the President on 072 854 5707

Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria

President Ramaphosa will update the nation about government's processing of evidence emerging from the Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture, as well as developments around the power utility, Eskom, when he replies to questions in the National Assembly today, 7 March 2019.

Putting questions for oral or written reply are some of the measures employed by Parliament to fulfill its Constitutional obligation to maintain oversight over the exercise of executive action, including the implementation of laws. 

 Accordingly, President Ramaphosa is expected to unpack government’s plans for Eskom, including measures to stabilise the power utility’s finances,   ensure the security of electricity supply and develop long-term sustainability for the utility through restructuring and other initiatives.

The President will also provide an update on legislation regarding the functions and powers of traditional leaders in South Africa. He is expected to indicate whether government will give effect to the December 2000 Cabinet Committee recommendations on the amendment of Chapters 7 and 12 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, for the purposes of clarifying the role of traditional leaders.

Following the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation’s reply on 14 November 2018 on the downgrading of the South African Embassy in Israel to a liaison office, the President is expected to outline progress on the matter.

Details of the National Assembly engagement are as follows:
Date: 07 March 2019
Time: 14:00
Venue: National Assembly, Parliament, Cape Town


Media enquiries: Khusela Diko, Spokesperson to the President on 072 854 5707 

Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria

President Cyril Ramaphosa has offered his warm congratulations to accomplished business leader Ms Mpumi Madisa on her naming as Chief Executive Officer-Designate of the international services, trading and distribution company, Bidvest.

As part of Bidvest’s leadership succession plan, current CEO Lindsay Ralphs will retain this role until Ms Madisa takes office in July 2020 to become the first woman to lead this major industrial group which is a Johannesburg Stock Exchange Top 40 entity, employs 137 000 people and has a market   capitalisation of R72bn.

Ms Madisa is a former Chief Director in the Gauteng Provincial Government who joined Bidvest in 2003 and went on to hold various senior management   and executive board director positions such as general manager business development, divisional director business development, corporate affairs   director and sales and marking director.

Ms Madisa is a Board Director of 16 Bidvest subsidiaries, a board director of Adcock Ingram and a board director of Business Leadership South Africa.

She holds a Master’s degree in Finance and Investment from the Wits Business School as well as a BComm Honours degree in Economics and a BSc in Economics and Mathematics from Wits University.

Bidvest named Ms Madisa as CEO-Designate on the eve of International Women’s Day, which is being observed today, Friday, 8 March 2019.

Welcoming this announcement, President Ramaphosa says: “The emergence of Mpumi Madisa as Chief Executive of a major corporation in our economy is a significant personal achievement that also signifies a new advance in gender transformation in business.

“Ms Madisa’s life and career trajectory is an inspiration to all of us, while Bidvest’s succession plan sets an example for many companies, especially at the level of the JSE Top 40, in the development of human capital and the transformation of our society.

“Ms Madisa’s appointment is therefore an occasion for celebration and for renewed commitment to accelerated change and progress in the highest echelons of our economy.”


Media enquiries: Khusela Diko, Spokesperson to the President on 072 854 5707 

Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria

President Cyril Ramaphosa has officially launched the Good Green Deeds campaign in Buffalo City, Eastern Cape. Good Green Deeds is a nationwide initiative to encourage South Africans to take responsibility for keeping the environment clean.
 
President Ramaphosa also visited a black woman-owned recycling enterprise AfriWaste, and took part in a clean-up at a taxi rank in Mdantsane.
 
Prior to the Good Green Deeds launch, the President led the launch of the Operation Phakisa on Chemicals and Waste, which has a number of detailed action plans that need to deliver results by 2023.
 
They include increasing the total contribution of the waste economy from R24.3 billion to R35.8 billion and creating 127,000 new direct and indirect jobs.
 
The plans also include providing support to 4,300 SMMEs with 70% targeted at youth and at least 30% targeted at women; and ultimately seeing more than 20 million tonnes of waste diverted from landfill.
 
President Ramaphosa emphasized that the waste sector had the potential to make a significant contribution towards economic growth and job creation, particularly at a time when the country had embarked upon a path of economic revitalization and renewal.
 
A number of companies made pledges at the event in support of green economy initiatives. Amongst the pledges received was an investment of R227m over the next three years by Coca-Cola Beverages South Africa and Coca Cola Peninsula Beverages to stimulate recycling industries; and R27m by global electronics giant Samsung towards e-waste management initiatives.
 
President Ramaphosa lauded efforts by the private sector as well as the international donor community to aid in South Africa’s transition to a low-carbon, inclusive and climate change resilient future.
 
Calling on citizens, business, industry, labour and civil society to work towards a common goal, President Ramaphosa called on all South Africans to perform just one Good Green Deed a day such as recycling waste, or conducting clean-up activities.
 
President Ramaphosa called on young people in particular to take the lead in being part of ward-based environmental education and awareness raising.
 
Describing a clean environment as ‘an important source of national pride’, the President said: “let us take ownership of this country that is South Africa, and of this planet that is our only home by keeping South Africa clean.”
 

Media enquiries: Khusela Diko, Spokesperson to the President on 072 854 5707 

Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria

President Cyril Ramaphosa has authorised the publication of the report of the High Level Review Panel on the State Security Agency (SSA), which has assessed the mandate, capacity and organisational integrity of the agency.

The Presidency has shared the report with a range of stakeholders including Minister of State Security Ms Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, the Inspector-General of Intelligence, Dr Setlhomamaru Dintwe, and Parliament’s Joint Standing Committee on Intelligence.

The  review panel was appointed in June 2018 to assess the structure of the SSA relative to its mandate and enquire into its systems and capacity.

President Ramaphosa asked the panel to identify all material factors that contributed to current challenges in the State Security Agency so that  appropriate measures could be instituted to prevent a recurrence.

The main objective of the review panel was to assist in ensuring a responsible and accountable national intelligence capability for the country in line with the Constitution and relevant legislation.

At a gathering with SSA leadership and staff in Pretoria on 15 February 2019, the President gave an undertaking that the report of the review panel would be published for the benefit of all South Africans, including the intelligence community.

The report would also be the subject of engagement with Parliament’s Joint Standing Committee on Intelligence, the Inspector-General of Intelligence and the Auditor-General.

The panel was chaired by Dr Sydney Mufamadi and included nine other members with a wide range of senior level experience and expertise in law, security studies, civil society, academia, the intelligence and security community and other arms of government.

The panel comprised:
• Dr Sydney Mufamadi 
• Prof Jane Duncan 
• Mr Barry Gilder
• Ms Siphokazi Magadla
• Mr Murray Michell
• Ms Basetsana Molebatsi 
• Mr Andre Pruis
• Mr Silumko Sokupa
• Mr Anthoni Van Nieuwkerk
• Prof Sibusiso Vil-Nkomo

A key finding of the panel is that there has been political malpurposing and factionalisation of the intelligence community over the past decade or more that has resulted in an almost complete disregard for the Constitution, policy, legislation and other prescripts.

It proposes the urgent development of a National Security Strategy as an overriding basis for redefining and refining the concepts, values, policies, practices and architecture involved in South Africa’s approach to security. 

This review should consider the separation of the SSA into two services – a domestic and a foreign service – with prudent delineation of scope.

With regard to investigations and consequences, the panel recommends that the President instruct the appropriate law enforcement bodies, oversight institutions and internal disciplinary bodies to investigate all manifest breaches of the law, regulations and other prescripts in the SSA as highlighted by the report of the panel, with a view to instituting, where appropriate, criminal prosecution and/or disciplinary proceedings.

President Ramaphosa has expressed his appreciation for the panel’s dedication to their task and for producing insights and recommendations that will enable open engagement on the role and character of the intelligence community in support of South Africa’s national development objectives and international relations.

A redacted version of the High Level Review Panel on the State Security Agency has been declassified and can be viewed at https://bit.ly/2ELYzQ8.

The report has been redacted for public consumption in view of the fact that the full report contains the names and identities of persons who cannot be named at this point, as well as details of operational matters that would compromise the work of the State Security Agency.


Media enquiries: Khusela Diko, Spokesperson to the President on 072 854 5707 

Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria

President Cyril Ramaphosa will travel to Harare, Zimbabwe, to Co-Chair the Third Session of the Bi-National Commission (BNC) with his counterpart, President Emmerson Mnangagwa  of the Republic of Zimbabwe.  The BNC  is scheduled to take place on 12 March 2019.

The BNC is preceded by a Senior Officials’ meeting that took place from 7– 8 March 2019 and a Ministerial meeting on 11 March 2019.

The two countries conduct their bilateral relations through a structured Bi-National Commission (BNC) established in 2015.

During the BNC, the two Heads of State will review the bilateral cooperation between the two countries as well as review progress made with the implementation of bilateral Agreements. 

To date, the two countries have signed forty five (45) Agreements, which cover a wide range of fields, including trade and investment, health, labour, migration, defence, taxation, tourism, scientific and technological cooperation, water and environment.

Trade cooperation between the two countries is at a high level to the extent that South African exports to Zimbabwe in 2018, amounted to approximately R30.8 billion, while imports from Zimbabwe amounted to approximately R3.6 billion, thus placing Zimbabwe among South Africa’s top trading partners on the Continent.

South Africa and Zimbabwe have good bilateral political, economic and social relations underpinned by strong historical ties dating back from the years of the liberation struggle.

President Ramaphosa will be accompanied by the Ministers of International Relations and Cooperation, Ms Lindiwe Sisulu,  Defence and Military Veterans, Ms Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, Trade and Industry, Dr Rob Davies, Home Affairs, Mr Siyabonga Cwele;  Transport, Dr Blade Nzimande and Deputy Minister of Social Development, Ms Hendrietta Bogopane-Zulu.


Media enquiries: Khusela Diko, Spokesperson to the President on 072 854 5707 

Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria